My name is Leon Battle. I am new to the neighborhood, having just moved in with my wife Casey in January 2024, and I have already fallen in love with Cheval. I love our friendly neighbors and fantastic golf club and can’t get enough of The Tavern. We've engaged with the community in various meaningful ways, and One More Child holds a special place in my heart. I wanted to share this information with you and sincerely hope it inspires you to get involved.

One More Child is an organization that operates nationally and in 19 countries worldwide. It addresses the needs of foster children, hungry children, single mothers, struggling families, and victims of sex trafficking. In 2023, One More Child provided direct services to 250,259 children and individuals, impacting an additional 143,334 people through advocacy, training, awareness, and volunteer efforts. The organization also provided over 19 million meals both nationally and globally.

One More Child serves vulnerable children and struggling families in several ways. We give foster children a safe and loving home while supporting and equipping the foster parents. In Hillsborough County, nearly 42,000 children are food insecure. We partner with individuals, organizations, and churches to pack meals and distribute food locally and worldwide.

We also serve single moms. Eighty percent of single-mom families in Hillsborough County do not earn enough income to meet their families' basic needs. Our Single Moms Program helps women acquire the resources and develop the skills needed to break out of poverty and become self-sufficient. 

Another critical service area is our work with human trafficking survivors. Florida is 3rd in the nation for the most reports of human trafficking. Our Anti-Trafficking Mobile Teams work with children and teens who have experienced the worst type of abuse. We provide counseling, mentoring, and other resources to help these brave survivors move toward a more promising future. 

I am the Vice President of Strategic Partnerships, and I have been with the organization since 2014. I work with individuals, businesses, and churches who want to make a life-changing impact on children and families. If you are interested in finding ways to give or be a part of the work we are doing, please let me know!

I came from a family that could have used One More Child’s services. While I did not have an organization that helped me, my local church and a group of caring adults came alongside me to help me get to where I am today. In return, I wanted to be the type of man who helps other children and families thrive, and there is no better place to do that than at One More Child.

My biggest challenge is getting our name out there so people engage with us. Our services are top-notch, and we make a massive difference in many people's lives in Tampa, Florida, the U.S., and globally. Despite being around for over 120 years, many people are hearing about us for the first time. They would have gotten involved sooner if they knew about our services. I am so grateful to Stroll Cheval for helping us get our name out there!

There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing lives changed. Last year, One More Child provided direct services to 250,259 children and individuals. We’re proud of this because we know that every number has a face, a name, and a story. They’re all unique. But one that stands out is a single mom from Tampa named Kenitra. She was living paycheck to paycheck, doing her best to support her children, and on the brink of poverty. She excelled in our Single Moms program, putting her on better footing for the future. However, something was missing – she didn’t have transportation. When going to work and taking her children to school, she walked. We surprised Kenitra with a gently used car thanks to a generous donor. I’ll never forget the tears of joy welling up in her eyes and the excitement on her children's faces when we drove up and handed her the keys.  While we address many children's and families' physical needs, the most significant impact occurs in the soul. When people are loved, valued, and given hope, it changes the trajectory of their lives.

We will be having a neighborhood-wide BBQ competition to support One More Child. This family-friendly event will pit neighborhood pitmasters against each other to see who is the best on the grill! We will have celebrity judges and a community vote to determine who makes the best brisket, pulled pork, or ribs. 

We recently broke ground on our new HopeStreet Campus in Tampa. It will include a 25,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution center (Compassion Center) to help children and working poor families in this area. It will be a hub for food distribution and a place where struggling families can receive vocational and professional skills training to achieve social mobility. The campus will be where churches, businesses, organizations, and individuals come together to help Tampa Bay area families get the life-changing resources they need.

I encourage my neighbors to go to onemorechild.org/tampa to learn how to get involved.